Are Ramayana and Mahabharata real?

One of my colleagues questioned me one day if I have never doubted the existence of Rama, Krishna et al? I definitely have questioned their existence and the more I question, the more I realize, they were realities.

Every description in The Ramayana and The Mahabharata is clear. The cities, the people, the clothing, food, their life, work, the administration, warfare, weaponry, vehicles, animals, name it – everything is described in full detail. Every incident is described along with the reaction of people from all walks of society. These epics contain entire discourses on administration, law, business and many other vital topics. They contain the bliss of sex and the sufferings of war. Childhood, youth and old age of both men and women are described here in extreme detail.

There are very strong arguments on controversial topics. Dharma (Righteousness) of all sections of society is neatly described. The fundamental rights and duties of men and women of all classes of society are told. The epics go on to describe what causes people to waver from their duties, the effects of not upholding Dharma on individual and society at large, what to do in such circumstances, how to triumph over your own bad deeds.

It does not glorify the hero; it does not show the villain as a filthy person. We get to see the right side of Kaikeyi, Ravana and Duryodhana and also the wrong side of Krishna and Yudhishtra. It showcases the good and bad qualities of everybody, it shows us the decision making process that goes on in everyone’s minds; it shows us how to choose the right path when at crossroads. It shows us by example how things must be thought through. There is no such modern book that teaches so many things in such an interesting story!

Hogwarts shows us just what there is. These epics tell us what there is, what needs to be corrected, how it needs to be for the benefit of society at large. Hogwarts just describes itself. Just one castle. These epics describe every detail of an entire country spanning from the Himalayas to the Indian ocean, to the caves and rivers of the west to the mountains and valleys of the East. Hogwarts is a creation of genius. Ayodhya and Hastinapura are blatant reality.

Geography of various places has been described in entirety. Kishkintha Kanda in Ramayanam has a description of geography of various places – North, South, East and West in India. This description is given by Sugreeva to his army when they leave to search for Seetha. Today, after thousands of years, we are still able to find places with the same names. Despite many years of so called modern development, we are still able to find the same geography in those places, the same flowers and fruits blossom in the same seasons. Names of various Kings and clans that ruled and existed in every geography have been mentioned. In every place, one can find lots of archeaological and other evidence such as temples, dams, inscriptions, etc to prove the existence of those Kings and clans.

The literature and language from that period has survived to this date. Many artifacts are found during excavations including chariot tracks. Names of various arts, artists – dancers, singers, sculptors, painters, etc have survived in the respective fields. The art forms have survived till date, the statues and paintings are till date present in many areas in India and Srilanka.

I don’t see how a poet or author could have imagined so many things. According to me, they were reality and hence the authors were able to get so much details.

There are people who ask me, just because Hogwarts is written with such detail, does it mean 500 years down the line, people should believe it is true? I can also ask them, 500 years down the line, will people believe Sachin Tendulkar existed? How could one man achieve so much? One needs a certain level of maturity to differentiate between Sachin and Superman. Very easily, if all of Superman comics and all of Sachin’s records are found, one can say that Sachin is real and Superman was fictional.

Then there are the people who say they don’t believe in Shaastras. Shaastra is Sanskrit means branch of education. Pakshi shaastra (ornithology), Shagun shaastra (science of omens), Vaasthu shaastra (architecture), Tharka shaastra (science of argument), Aarogya shaastra (medicine), Jyothida shaastra (science of the planets), Yuddha shaastra (military science) and many more sciences owe their root to those periods. If people do not believe in branches of education, I can only pity them.